Baltimore City Police Vehicles
2014 Chevy
Courtesy Rick Ojeda
2014 Chevy
Northern District
3 Dec 2014
Northern District
3 December 2014
3 December 2014
3 December 2014
3 December 2014
3 December 2014
The Department settled on the new design and ordered 60 vehicles, there were only 30 in the country all white, with 30 more our of the country. The department took them, the black vehicles were importated back into the country and came to us; in the future we will only get black, but initally we had to take what was available. I like the blak best, and think this is one of the best looking cars we’e had in a long time.
Courtesy of Jim Derreth
2012 BPD Chevy Caprice PPV
Diecast BPD Hidden Link
20Courtesy of Jim Derreth
2012 BPD Chevy Caprice PPV
Courtesy of Jim Derreth
2012 BPD Chevy Caprice PPV
COURTESY BALTIMORE POLICE DEPARTMENT
COURTESY SGT. ROBERT FISCHER
COURTESY SGT. ROBERT FISCHER
COURTESY SGT. ROBERT FISCHER
COURTESY SGT. ROBERT FISCHER
Courtesy Gary and Kath Lapchak
Car Logo – 1985
UNUSUAL LETTERING AND 2 TONE PAINT SCHEME
1950’s Chevrolet Sedan Accident Investigation car
checking out the POLICE decal on the rear of the car.
Sunpaper pic
1957 FORD
All Black with a White roof was selected.
COURTESY SGT. ROBERT FISCHER
Courtesy Mark Lindsay
Officer Howard “Bud” Lindsay, his partner Officer Phil Walters on the left and I believe the officer in the middle is Andy Sullivan of the Southern Dist. Andy was the footman around our house back in the 60’s
Courtesy Mark Lindsay
The first CP-11 and CP-12 trucks were donated to the Department from a Baltimore Bread Company. Here one of the trucks: late 60’s. At the Fallsway parking lot behind the old HQ Bldg.
Photo courtesy Sgt. Robert Fisher
1961 Ford A.I.D. unit TC-2
Sunpaper photographer William L LaForceDate 2 Oct 67 – Police Department Baltimore Patrol Cars 1967
Courtesy Officer John Brazil
An old used MTA bus given to the BPD and converted into a police vehicle by
painting it with the new blue and white color scheme as used on the current fleet of vehicles.
Photo courtesy Bill Manzke
COURTESY SGT. ROBERT FISCHER
Sun Paper Photo Courtesy of my future Son-in-Law Matt Zembower
In 1971 the Department started adding Shop Numbers to the Roof, or Trunk of radio/patrol cars so that “Fox” could more easily identify officers from the sky. This was for both officer safety, and to more easily combat crime; as while in the air the observer could tell specific units where suspects on the ground were hiding.
COURTESY OFFICER W.M.HACKLEY
1971 Ford shop # 9677 635 car Northwest District
COURTESY SGT. ROBERT FISCHER
1971 FORD
BPD NEWSLETTER
Officer Succumbs To Exhaust Fumes
September 1975
Funeral services were conducted on Wednesday, September 17, 1975 for Southwestern District Officer Edward S. Sherman who died September 13, 1975 as the result of. a unique and tragic set of circumstances. Officer Sherman, 28, a 5 year veteran of the Baltimore Police Department was found unconscious in his patrol car by two fellow officers who were on routine patrol.
The following excerpts from investigative reports shed light on what caused the officer to succumb to carbon monoxide poisoning: “At about 0718 hours this date, Officer Gary Martin and Officer R. Gooden, working 812 car, responded to the rear of Edgewood Elementary School . . . to try up same. Upon arrival they found 811 car . . . on the rear lot with the motor running and all of the windows rolled up tight. “The car was butted against a chain link fence with a deep undergrowth (of weeds) . . . After attempting to arouse the officer by beating on the windows . . . Officer Martin broke the right front window and pulled Officer Sherman from the vehicle. While on the scene Officer Martin checked Officer Sherman’s vital signs and could find none. . . ” Extensive tests were made using the same automobile in an effort to ascertain exactly what caused carbon monoxide, in amounts sufficient to cause a fatality, to accumulate in the passenger area. Results of these tests pointed to three factors, which in the opinion of the experts, caused the high carbon monoxide level:
1. The patrol unit was backed to a chain link fence which was covered by a high growth of weeds.
2. The engine of the vehicle was left running” for an extended period of time. All of the windows were closed. The heater was not in use.
3. A small strip of rubber molding (weather stripping) underneath the trunk door near the locking mechanism was missing. (See photograph below.)
Subsequent tests made on 1973, 1974 and 1975 model marked patrol units indicated that the absence of any of the above listed circumstances would not have caused fatal levels of carbon monoxide to accumulate in the passenger section of these vehicles.
Commanding officers subsequently caused an inspection of all vehicles in all districts and divisions in order to determine if the rubber molding was intact and that the rubber grommets (where appropriate) on the trunk floor were in place. On going checks will continue. The rubber molding or rubber grommets can be repaired or replaced quickly in any defective Departmental vehicles.
In order to prevent similar tragedies in the future all motor vehicle operators are to make certain that the rear of the vehicle is clear of any obstruction when it is to be parked with the engine running. Additionally windows should be opened as far as comfort permits whenever heaters are in use.
BPD NEWSLETTER
In 1975 the new white color and striping scheme were phasing out the old blue & white unit
Photo courtesy Officer Mike Caplan
1970’s VOLVO on patrol on Belair Rd., Northeast District
BALTIMORE POLICE NEWSLETTER
Representatives of the Volvo Corporation of America recently loaned the Department on a trial basis a 1974 Volvo. The air conditioned four cylinder marked unit is being compared in a performance study with a 1974 Plymouth. The study is designed to determine the feasibility of utilizing a smaller vehicle in patrol. It is currently deployed on a high mileage post in the Northeastern District for 30 days and then will be switched to the Central District for a comparable time span on a post with low mileage and heavy traffic.
This Traffic car was the only one in the fleet to have white wall tires and red lights,
which were specially approved by Colonel Dick Francis.
Courtesy Joe Wiczulis
COURTESY SGT. ROBERT FISCHER
BALTIMORE POLICE DOOR SHIELDS
1990’S CORVETTE
CONFISCATED FROM A DRUG DEALER
1990’S MOBILE COMMAND CENTER
2014
2014
Jan 2014
Jan 2014
Jan 2014
Jan 2014
1992 FORD TAURUS
1995 Chevrolet
1997 Ford Crown Vic Police Interceptor
PHOTO COURTESY OFFICER MIKE CAPLAN
PHOTO COURTESY OFFICER MIKE CAPLAN
2000 Suzuki dirt bike
Mounted Unit Pickup & trailer
2006 MINITURE ELECTRIC CAR
This picture and below article was found on the internet by a visitor to our fair city.
Do you think Baltimore City police cars should be black or white?
Pretty soon, the city’s white police cars will be a thing of the past.
The white Baltimore police patrol car — a familiar presence on city streets for decades — is slowly being phased out and replaced in a new color: black.
Over the next few months, residents can expect black-marked 2014 Chevy Caprice patrol cars cruising the streets of Baltimore. The change was requested by officers who wanted to appear more professional in updated cars.
The new cars are adorned with a blue streak that runs at an angle on both sides of the car along with a police shield and “Baltimore Police” in white lettering. Police FoxTrot helicopters and many mobile command trucks have had a similar design for more than a decade.
“It’s one that we’re proud of, and it’s one that we think the people of Baltimore are really going to like,” police spokesman Lt. Eric Kowalczyk said.
It’s not the first time the department has embarked on a new color scheme. The city’s police cars were black after World War II when the color was the only shade available. Since then, the cars have been black and white, and then blue and white. In the 1990s, the department planned to shift to baby blue to present a “friendlier image,” but the plan was shelved two years and $2 million later.Former Police Commissioner Edward T. Norris said he wanted to switch to black because he felt the white cars were too closely linked to, of all things, a 1970s television comedy. He also thought sleek black cars would give officers a sense of pride. The change was announced but never occurred.
The current switch is also being driven by the department’s desire to boost officers’ flagging morale. Less than 10 percent of Baltimore officers described morale as “good” in a department survey last year.
Commanders believe that raises approved last year, a more favorable work schedule and the new patrol cars will help change that. The cruisers also feature seats that adjust more easily, and light and siren switches in more accessible locations.
The new black cars will be added to the current fleet as older vehicles are replaced, Kowalczyk said. The changeover won’t cost additional money, officials said.
The department bought 30 black cars this year, and they are currently being outfitted for patrol.
Baltimore police union president Gene Ryan believes the cruisers are a big improvement. A committee of officers of various ranks picked the design, color scheme, lettering and marking, police said.
“If you let somebody have ownership, it always boosts morale,” Ryan said. “That car is their office.”
It’s an iconic shift for the city.
Millions of television viewers recognize Baltimore’s white fleet of Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptors, Chevy Impalas and Caprices thanks to the police television drama “The Wire.”
Before that, Kowalczyk noted, the 1990s TV show “Homicide: Life on the Streets,” also based in Baltimore, featured different white cars from that era.
“Every design has been iconic in its own right, whether it’s been seen on television shows or in the common understanding of the people of Baltimore,” said Kowalczyk.
The Police Department has briefed some community groups on the change. Many have embraced it, especially if it helps officers do a better job. The city has significant problems to confront, they said, including more than 190 homicides this year.
“Times are changing. … You’re reaching into the millennial generation, and they’re into a more modern and sleek look,” said Joyce Green, president of the Central District Police Community Relations Council. “I want something that the officers like that they designed, and they can take pride in. And that should boost anyone’s morale.”
Black police cars are common in Maryland. Bel Air police are still changing over their fleet since making the shift to black in 2012 after 25 years of white cars with green lettering. Howard County police and Maryland State Police also have black vehicles. Maryland Transportation Authority police switched to black in 1988.
“The primary justification was to achieve a new distinctive look, as the agency was in transition at the time,” MdTA police spokesman Sgt. Jonathan Green said.
Police cars painted primarily white or a combination of white and black have been historically associated with policing. Some research shows those schemes are the easiest to distinguish as related to law enforcement.
Researchers have also studied whether white or black-and-white cars serve as better crime deterrents than other cars in other colors, and have come to differing conclusions.
Times are changing. … You’re reaching into the millennial generation, and they’re into a more modern and sleek look. – Joyce Green, president of the Central District Police Community Relations Council
A 2009 Federal Emergency Management Agency study on the visibility and conspicuousness of emergency vehicles found that “no single particular color” appeared to be the optimal choice for emergency vehicles to be seen under varying conditions.
Mark D. Thomas, professor of cognitive science at Albany State University, researched whether color made any difference as to how fast the mind recognizes a police car.
Black-and-white cars, he said, are the most recognizable police cruisers because the color pattern has been most widely used by agencies. That combination, he said, also sticks out more than other shades.
But he also found the amount of time it takes the mind to recognize black-and-white cars versus all-white cars as police vehicles is less than half a second. The amount of time it takes the mind to recognize a black car as a police vehicle is also probably negligible, he said.
He said many police agencies use either white or a combination with white as the primary color because they believe it better represents “community policing,” where officers aim to be visible and easily accessible. State police agencies, whose officers roam highways, often use dark colors, he said, because troopers want to sneak up on speeding motorists.
“If [police[ want something more stealthy, black is more stealthy than white,” Thomas said. “But if they want something that will be seen more, especially at night, then they want white.”
Baltimore police said they don’t believe they’ll lose any visibility with the new design.
“I don’t think there’s going to be anyone mistaking them,” Kowalczyk said.
Past efforts to change patrol car colors have backfired. The department dumped the baby-blue scheme partly because many officers and residents felt the cars made police look soft.
In 2001, the department began making the change to black when then-Mayor Martin O’Malley learned of the plan, according to Norris, who was commissioner at the time.
Norris said O’Malley, now governor, demanded the commissioner stop the changeover because he felt black would project an image of a force that was overbearing and intimidating.
O’Malley could not be reached for comment Friday.
“So I painted everything else those colors,” Norris said. “The command vehicles, the helicopter, everything else.”
Norris said he also ordered other changes to boost morale to make up for the pay raises he couldn’t give officers. He swapped out 9 mm service weapons for more powerful .40-caliber guns and lifted a ban on the use of espantoons — the wooden nightsticks that Baltimore officers had used for generations.
“You can’t pay them what they deserve, but you can give them things that will help them in their jobs,” he said.
The white cars especially rankled Norris when a research firm showed him that the lettering on the side of the cars matched the font used on the credits of the “Mary Tyler Moore Show.”
Black police cars, he said, would have projected a tougher image.
“I just thought it commanded more respect,” Norris said.